Of Regrets And Hope
by Skinny Hippo
Summary: A swipe of silver. A flash of red. And he was on the ground. AngstTragedy and Sasukecentric


**Author's Note:I wrote this for an English assignment. I would really appreciate any feedback you have on it (hint,hint), even flames. This is my first fanfic, though, so please douse any flames into sparks. Thanks for taking the time to read this! **

**Of Regrets And Hope**

As he lay in a puddle of his own blood, scenes of the rest of Team 7 back in Konoha flashed through Sasuke's mind. There were the times that he and Naruto had sparred competitively, and the many, many times that Sakura had gazed at him adoringly, longingly.

Though the raven-haired boy would never admit it, he **_did_** care for his teammates. The onyx-eyed Shinobi had tried to cover up the fact by acting cold and stoic towards Naruto and Sakura, though, because he just couldn't afford to make bonds.

Why? Because the massacre survivor was an avenger. Because, as he had told Sakura before he had abandoned her, before he had left her lying unconscious on a bench, the path that he chose to follow differed from the path of most.

Sasuke remembered the many nights he had lain in his room in the Sound, broken and bloody. On those nights, when his world seemed more enshrouded by darkness than usual, the ex-Leaf-nin reminded himself why he had betrayed his village and knowingly hurt those he cared about most. Sasuke had done these things of his own free will, too - and all to train under a snake of a sannin.

"Because it will all be worth it. The pain, the guilt, the lost friendships will all be worth it when I've finally ridded the world of **HIM**. Then, I'll have gotten my revenge, and ended the life of the one who is not worthy to be called an Uchiha…" the Sharingan wielder had told himself whenever he started to have uncertainties about his decisions.

Sasuke smiled bitterly. 'Years of devoting myself to getting stronger so that I can defeat my brother…and in the end, it doesn't even matter. I'm going to die here, 'The Uchiha's thoughts were confirmed when he found himself coughing up a rich, crimson liquid.

Suddenly, Sasuke realized that he was afraid of dying. Very, very afraid. There was so much of life he had missed out on in his mad quest for power…he just couldn't die yet!

"Please God," the dying boy begged, though he wasn't very religious. "Let me have just one more chan-," Sasuke was interrupted by another fit of coughing.

Summoning the last of his strength, the 15 year old continued. "I am Uchiha Sasuke." he whispered proudly to the wind, making an effort to hold his head high with the dignity that comes from being part of such a prestigious clan. "And," he went on

not-so-proudly. "I have wasted my life striving for an unreachable goal. But I want another chance-a redo! Please…" With this, Sasuke drew his last breath, and let the blackness envelope him.

And so ended the life of a boy who had everything the average person dreams for, yet nothing that he wanted.

A boy who made many mistakes, and had to pay the consequences for each and every one of them.

A boy who no one could break through to, though not for lack of trying.

A boy who had the potential to be **so much more**.

* * *

Elsewhere, in the Hidden Leaf, both Sakura and Naruto were wide awake in their beds. Neither could fall asleep because of the feeling that all was not well with the Uchiha prodigy. 

"Sasuke…"the two remaining members of Team 7 whispered in unison, as if calling for him would bring the traitor back. The only thing that kept them hanging on was the hope-no, the belief- that Sasuke would return to Konoha someday. On that day, everything would finally be alright again. Sure, things wouldn't be exactly how they used to be; there just wasn't enough trust for that. Sakura and Naruto would make it work, though. The only thing that would matter was that the 3 were reunited once more. The Kyuubi's container and the pink-haired medic-nin **_knew_** that, eventually, they and Sasuke would be a **team** again.

How were Naruto and Sakura to know that they would be seeing Sasuke soon-in a coffin?

* * *

**Press that little button**... you **know** you _**want**_ to! 


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